I have yet to find the answer to the latter question on any of the Delaware political blogs (save one), but I must believe that the hypothetical has crossed the minds of those in better positions of power.
Granted, Biden has said repeatedly that he wouldn't take it. And if Sen. Clinton becomes the president, it appears even less certain that it would happen.
But who is to say that isn't normal political double talk? Polls appear to be divergent on who will actually win the nomination (for both parties). I wouldn't rule out our senior senator being offered a cabinet position, nor would I necessarily rule out him winning in Iowa (although I would say this is a longshot).
Assuming there is a gaping vacuum in the Senate for Delaware as a consequence of the 2008 general election, what sort of special election debate would this create?
Delaware Watch and Delaware Grapevine have both chimed in on this issue to some degree. I take no position on the matter at this point, mainly because it is far too speculative. However, if I was the attorney general and had thoughts of this possibility, I would be concerned about how the decision would affect perceptions of my credibility and an almost assured attack on the timing of my actions and resulting qualifications.
I pose this question based simply on when this special election could occur and how long Beau Biden would have been AG when he would essentially have to abandon his duties as attorney general to focus on this hypothetical special election. In some ways, this whole possibility sort of reminds me of the Simpsons episode where the first President Bush moved across the street from them and wrote in his memoirs, "Since I achieved all my goals as President in one term, there was no need for a second." Somewhat relatedly, a decision to run after such an abbreviated stint in public office could wreak havoc on his general credibility, particularly given the acrimonious and close nature of the last election against Ferris Wharton.
Many of AG Biden's ideas are positive and ambitious (which is good), and he's passionate about them (which is also good). Realistically, however, they will take several years to implement, mainly because of feasibility and cost issues, among other concerns. Wouldn't any Republican who runs against him be able to throw at him the issue of his kicking up dust and then leaving someone else to clean up after him? I don't think he would necessarily do the same thing when he got to the Senate, but the issue remains.
It seems to me that some ideas are better played out to use as examples of merit rather than as optimistic talking points about what could happen when and if they play out. The whole idea of him leaving his term early and jumping on what is debatable as a more prestigious ship would be a fairly high political hurdle to climb over. Maybe I'm looking at it too simply. This isn't really my point either; I am simply playing devil's advocate for the hypothetical democratic candidates.
The question that remains is who would be the Republican that the party places their bets on to run against him (or anyone for that matter)? I do not know. If the answer is as simple as "there isn't anyone," or if the answer is "Harry Levin," this strikes me as implying that the Republican party of Delaware hasn't thought this out in the long term yet.
But again, I may just be missing something since I have been out of touch with the political landscape of Delaware. If anyone can point me in the direction of where this is discussed and who is discussing it (online or otherwise), I am more than willing to learn more about it.
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